Idarkopf tower until 2022, Wooden observation tower in Weitersbach, Germany.
Idarkopf tower is a 31.1-metre hybrid observation tower of wood and hot-dip galvanized steel, erected in 2022 on the Idarkopf in the Idar Forest. Its platform at 28 metres is reached by 170 steps. It stands about 100 metres northwest of the 745.7-metre summit, near the boundary of Weitersbach and Stipshausen.
A first tower, built in 1909 as an artillery observation post reached by a wooden rung ladder, was replaced in 1980 by a 28 m wooden tower with a triangular plan and 150 steps. Arson on 21 October 2018 badly damaged it and it was demolished in spring 2022. The wood-and-galvanized-steel tower opened in December 2022 with 170 steps.
The tower serves as a gathering point for hikers exploring the Hunsrück landscape. People use it as a landmark and destination for outdoor excursions through the surrounding forest.
Two parking areas near Stipshausen provide starting points for reaching the observation platform. The walking route is well-marked and passes through the forested landscape of the Hunsrück area.
The tower doubles as a radio operating point for Summits on the Air, a programme in which amateur radio operators transmit from mountain summits. Its 31.1-metre hybrid wood and galvanised steel structure, opened in December 2022, replaced a 1980 wooden tower destroyed by arson in October 2018.
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